When situations occur in our lives that are sometimes quite devastating up to and including the event of death, we are often overwhelmed. We say, "Well God is with us." But then we try to find infinite regress. "What else?" We want there to be something beyond God, which we cannot find. But there is no infinite regress. God has spoken. God has declared himself. That is my answer to the situation and it doesn’t matter what the situation is. There is no infinite regress. In verse 11 and verse 12, God says, "I, even I, am the Lord, and apart from me there is no savior. I have revealed and saved and proclaimed—I, and not some foreign god among you. You are my witnesses,’ declares the Lord, ‘that I am God.’" There are no unlimited explanations in the universe if absolute priority is respected. The I am says, "I am God, I am savior, I am revealer, I have saved you and I have proclaimed to you." That’s the correct explanation to their life. Human priority, situational priority, gives itself over to flights of fantasy. Some of these can be very extreme like the interesting writing that has come up in the last two or three decades seeking to explain the presence of the great pyramid of Egypt and other such phenomena as the product of extraterrestrial visitors. From the Lord’s point of view there are no unlimited explanations in the universe because his word is irreducible and it cannot be reversed unless he himself decides to reduce it.

The error of holding priority furthermore is an act of extreme pretension. In the same passage in Isaiah 43, verses 14 and 15 are very instructive. "This is what the Lord says—your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: ‘For your sake I will send to Babylon and bring down as fugitives all the Babylonians, in the ships in which they took pride. I am the Lord, your Holy One, Israel’s Creator, your King.’" The error of holding human priority such as was true of the Babylonians is pretentious. The error of holding human priority, which was part of the sin of Israel as Isaiah preaches to this collection of people, is pretentious. It claims to possess superior qualities. It claims to possess greater importance that it in effect does not have. The Babylonians will be brought down as fugitives and he’ll bring down all of the structures that they had brought into being like the ships in which they took such pride. The error of holding priority is pretentious. The absolute priority, the Lord himself, is irreducible. It is something beyond which we cannot get—not in this universe.

Yet another concept also from the book of Isaiah is centered in Chapter 44 and there is also a mention of it in Chapter 48. A number of amazing statements are made in this statement that show us that absolute priority defines singularity. Apparently from what we read in the scripture the universe was not created to be ruled by differentials. Differentials would be a manifestation of all the different human intelligences that have populated time. Those are differentials. We were not created, nor was the earth apparently, created to be governed by these differentials. The Lord created the physical universe to be governed by himself—the great singularity in the universe and he also insists that human intelligence be put into a subsequent position and to yield to this singularity. His manifestation of himself as an absolute priority defines what that singularity is. It defines it so that a human intelligence has no illusion about the difference between the two minds. Human intelligence is a subsequency dependent upon the unique and absolute singularity, which is the Lord himself.

In Isaiah 44:6, he writes, "This is what the Lord says—Israel’s King and redeemer, the Lord Almighty: ‘I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God.’" He is talking about the initial conditions. He is the initial condition of the universe. He is the initial condition of all situations. "I am the first and I am the last; and apart from me there is no God." And that includes the intelligence of man, the vaunted situational intelligence of man.

In Isaiah 44:7, the statement is made, "Who then is like me? Let him proclaim it. Let him declare and lay out before me what has happened since I established my ancient people, and what is yet to come—yes, let him foretell what will come." He is telling us that absolute priority defines the singularity and that this singularity is countervailing. He countervails human intelligence. He therefore countervails the position of human priority. His presence does that. "Who then is like me?" he says. "You’re not like me in any sense. You will never assume the position of priority. You will never assume the position of priority over the material world. I am that position. I countervail your intelligence. This is not a popular message, even to many of us in the church, because we don’t like the idea of human intelligence being something created by God, being subordinated in such a way. Yet he consistently tells us, "I am the initial condition. I am the first and the last. And furthermore, I countervail all who stand relative to me." Daniel and his intelligence were admittedly countervailed by the intelligence of God.

In the double embrace this great man of faith and his three friends, Hananiah, Azariah and Mishael—these four great examples of faith—reached up to embrace the non-situational and the non-situational reached down and embraced them. The significance of this is that they were countervailed in the position of priority in the universe. They absolved themselves from it; they walked away from it. They knew there was only one singularity. This universe is attempting to be ruled by competing differentials. We do not believe that this is the nature of the universe. It is a plenary universe. There is a part you can see, the part you can’t see and the link between the two.

Isaiah 44:8 states, "Do not tremble, do not be afraid. Did I not proclaim this and foretell it long ago? You are my witnesses. Is there any God besides me? No, there is no other Rock; I know not one." He is in the prior position to all events. He proves that in Daniel Chapter 2 when he interprets the dream for Nebuchadnezzar and he says, "You Nebuchadnezzar are the head of gold. After you there will come a wave of successive kingdoms. God is in the absolute prior position." The statements here in verse 8 indicate that this grand singularity, this absolute priority is counterphobic. He says to his people, "Do not be afraid." That’s counter-phobic. And why not? He’s in the position of absolute priority. Our phobias, our fears our concerns, are much like those that would have been in the minds of those saints who were concerned about the persecution discussed in 1 Peter. He would say to his people, "Do not be afraid. Cast all of your cares upon me. Do not be anxious." In Matthew 6, he would say, "Do not be concerned, do not be anxious, do not be fearful about what you shall eat or what you shall wear or about the other exigencies of life."

We are to live a counterphobic life. Why? Because of the absolute priority of God over circumstances. When we face all the situations of life, as dangerous and as difficult and as painful and as demanding as they are; as heart wrenching as many of those things can be, we know and we have defined the singularity that is the absolute priority that governs the universe. We see him as the initial condition. "I am the first and the last." We know that he has countervailed all human intelligence relative to this situation including our own. We know that he countervails the forces that are apparently, at least from a situational point of view, working; but in James 5, he would say, "If any among you are ill, then come to me." In James 1, he would say, "If any of you lack wisdom, come to me and I will lavishly give to you." All of these things, the intelligence of men and the human dynamics, the physical and the physiological realities that we think we see have all been countervailed. No one is like the Lord. He ushers us into a position of seeing him as counterphobic. Our double embrace is the answer to anxiety and fear and disappointment and the sense of overarching loss.

Isaiah 44:9-11 states, "All who make idols are nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless. Those who would speak up for them are blind; they are ignorant, to their own shame. Who shapes a god and casts an idol, which can profit him nothing? He and his kind will be put to shame, craftsmen are nothing but men. Let them all come together and take their stand; they will be brought down to terror and infamy." Here is the aspect of disestablshment. Man cannot put himself in the position of priority. He is going to be disestablished and all of the structures that he has created will be brought to shame. The Lord is describing the ultimate act of disestablishment. Isaiah writes 200 years before the ascendancy of the empire of Babylon. Other Jews will live through Babylonian captivity. They will see the utter disestablishment of human priority when the forces of Babylon come to the gates of Jerusalem and it is besieged and destroyed. We are not here to be ruled by differentials. The Lord will disestablish all such things. Why? Because he is the singularity and the absolute priority that he and his word occupy show us the clean delineation in the outline of himself and his presence in the universe.

Isaiah 44:12-17 shows us that this absolute priority demonstrates the inconsistencies in the human prior position. "The blacksmith takes a tool and works with it in the coals; he shapes an idol with hammers, he forges it with the might of his arm." Here is a man who has put himself in the prior position over the material content of a chunk of metal. He is the one who has created this. "The carpenter measures with a line and makes an outline with a marker; he roughs it out with chisels and marks it with compasses." All this shows his sense of the priority of his intelligence over the tree, over the wood. "He shapes it into the form of man, of man in all his glory, that it may dwell in a shrine. He cut down cedars, or perhaps took a cypress or oak. He let it grow among the trees of the forest, or planted a pine, and the rain made it grow." Here is an individual who in all his relations to the tree has exhibited his priority. HE has cut the tree down; HE has planted the tree and HE has nurtured the tree and the tree has grown. HE has dragged the log home and HE has done the sculpting. "It is man’s fuel for burning; some of it he takes and warms himself, he kindles a fire and bakes bread. But he also fashions a god an worships it; he makes an idol and bows down to it." He is trying to establish this idol, over which he demonstrated priority, to a prior position even over his own mind. "Half of the wood he burns in the fire; over it he prepares his meal, he roasts his meat and eats his fill. He also warms himself and says, ‘Ah! I am warm; I see the fire.’ Form the rest he makes a god, his idol; he bows down to it and worships. He prays to it and says, ‘Save me; you are my god.’" This is highly inconsistent. Absolute priority demonstrates the inconsistency in man’s holding this prior position and the inconsistency with which that kind of an approach to the world in which he lives and the world that he cannot see is beset. More to be said about that a little later.

In Isaiah 44:18-20, Isaiah says that understanding flows from this singularity and from no other source. "They know nothing, they understand nothing; their eyes are plastered over so they cannot see, and their minds closed so they cannot understand." They are in a position of priority and in that position of priority, there is a price to be paid. They don’t understand anything. Their eyes are plastered over. They can’t see what must be seen. Their minds are closed. They cannot understand. Very reminiscent of the statements made about the man without the Spirit in the book of 1 Corinthians 2. "No one stops to think, no one has the knowledge or understanding to say, ‘Half of it I used for fuel; I even baked bread over its coals, I roasted meat and I ate. Shall I make a detestable thing from what is left? Shall I bow down to a block of wood?’ He feeds on ashes, a deluded heart misleads him; he cannot save himself, or say, ‘Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?’" There is no understanding. Why? Because understanding and knowledge does not flow from the human prior position. What the Lord refers to as "understanding," the understanding that makes a difference in the universe, flows from the absolute priority. To understand that one must be in the subsequent position. The intelligence of man must be shifted to the subsequent position.

In Isaiah 44:21-23, he will indicate that the presence of the absolute priority ends up being displayed in the human condition. "Remember these things, O Jacob for you are my servant, O Israel. I have made you, you are my servant; O Israel, I will not forget you. I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you. Sing for joy, O heavens, for the Lord has done this; shout aloud, O earth beneath. Burst into song, you mountains…" Why? Because the mountains "understand" they are in a subsequent position. Because they would be more understanding than those whose eyes are plastered over, they might sing. "…you forests and all your trees, for the Lord has redeemed Jacob, he displays his glory in Israel." This absolute priority is to be displayed in the human condition if we so pursue it.

In Matthew 28:20, there is a very key statement made that is very proximate to our consciousness as Jesus takes his leave from the earth. "…and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." He says that he will always be with us to the very end. This includes all the things that will happen, but also all of those things that are unknown. He is stating there that absolute priority is the master of the unknown. There are a lot of things that are going to happen to these disciples and will happen to all disciples throughout the ages, most of which they cannot imagine, many of which are revealed to us in the text. Who is the master of the unknown? Not human priority although humans have sought that. There are many things that are unknown and still remain unknown, because we have not appealed to an embracing of the absolute priority.

In John Chapter 8, especially verse 58 where Jesus in his manifestation of the truth recognizes and helps us to come to an understanding that absolute priority dictates the true human condition. That’s an important principal. John 8:58 says, "I tell you the truth,’ Jesus answered, ‘before Abraham was born, I am!’ At this, they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds." Here Jesus was saying, "I dictate the true human condition. Absolute priority was here before anyone, including Abraham and including all of you." He is prior to the Hebrew nation. He is prior to the Hebrew language. He is prior to the entire human race. It is he alone, the absolute priority, that dictates the true human condition. The error of holding human priority over the human condition misleads us. But it is often found as the basis for analysis. No matter how revolutionary the human intelligence may be in terms of the human condition, or how reactive the outcome of all that is, it is still a continuity-based kind of thinking. It’s a part of the continuum of man seeking to hold human intelligence in a position of priority in the universe. So we often reach conclusions in this world. In fact all conclusions that are reached relative to all circumstances, whether it’s the function of some government body or whether it’s individuals or whether it’s a collective of such individuals. All such conclusions that have not been the result of the double embrace would simply be a part of a continuity-based way of thinking. And human priority puts itself into that position thinking that its appraisal of the human condition and its determining of what the condition is and therefore what the human condition must have is very misleading.

In John 11, to return to the resurrection of Lazarus, there are two verses in this context that need to be exposed and considered for the value that they offer to us. Those are verses 25 and 26. "Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.’ Do you believe this?" He is teaching us that absolute priority is a pre-requisite of thought. Absolute priority is a pre-requisite of thought about physics, physiology, space and time. It’s impossible to have a resurrection without physical content. That’s what resurrections are. So there has to be a way of thinking—a prerequisite of thought about such things in the material side. What do we think about physics, about the forces of a giant facing a small boy, armed only with a slingshot? What about the physiology attacking fortifications with walls up to the sky? What do we think about space and time? The error of holding human priority was Martha’s particular problem.

There is a thought that has been offered by Isaac Newton in Corollary Five and was echoed by Emanuel Kant in his writings as he championed the Newtonian system of the universe. The thought is that space is prior to knowledge. Their thought is that all knowledge comes about because of comparisons and contrasts to this priority of space. In other words, space (and we might add physics, physiology and time, which are all subsumed under the concept of space because all of those forces occupy the space in which we find ourselves) becomes a pre-requisite for knowledge. This is often referred to as pre-a priori experience. I would suggest that this same concept is still very prevalent in the thinking of many, many people today. That space, the physical content of the world in which we live, is really prior to the possibility of knowledge, that knowledge depends upon this and that which is to be known is dependent upon that which "is." To the degree that we agree with this is the degree to which we would accept Kant and Newton and others relative to their understanding of the nature of the material order about physical content.

When Jesus comes to this setting and when he responds to Martha’s disappointment and he responds to her situational explanation regarding the death of her brother, he is trying to expose the grand error in her thinking. That’s of course, true of all the people that will be witnesses to the resurrection of Lazarus. The body had been in the tomb several days. Certain processes that we think of as irreversible have taken place. So they have to think about the physics, physiology, space and time. It’s all wrapped up in the beloved body of their brother and their friend who has now departed. But the absolute priority of God and the absolute priority of revelation become prerequisites of thought about such things.

This is Jesus’ principle. Let’s address this and refer to it as "3-place logic." We can draw a diagram. On the left-hand side of the page, let’s write "non-situational intelligence." To the right some distance from those words, we’ll draw a small stick figure, which will represent the believer. There will be arms reaching up from the stick figure or reaching back to embrace the non-situational and then lines coming from the non-situational purporting to embrace the individual. The individual is a person of faith. To the right of the stick figure some distance let’s draw a 3-sided box that is representative of the "world situation." Leading from the stick figure into the box, draw a wavy line with an arrow at the end of it to represent the area of analogic relations. In other words, we have three places here that consume our interest. The double embrace of the non-situational in general would occupy the prior position. Non-situational intelligence is in the prior position. The little stick figure finds himself being a subsequency. Human intelligence is converted into a subsequency. He has embraced the non-situational. He has subordinated himself to the non-situational. The non-situational has embraced him. So he has been converted, his intelligence has been converted into a subsequency. Then when we look at the little three-sided box we have there physical content. But we also find that the physical content is also converted into a subsequency. This is space. This is physics and physiology. This is time. All of these things become subsequencies to the non-situational intelligence of God.

Now the material content, the physical content in the 3-sided box is not subsequent to us. It is subsequent to the absolute intelligence. Our understanding of it is subsequent to the non-situational intelligence. Daniel understands that. In this statements in Chapter 9, he states that the reason they are in captivity, that their physical circumstances have become what they are, is because they were subsequences to the power of God. They understand to a large degree how all of these hardships have befallen them and what this infers in terms of their relationship to God. Physical content always becomes a subsequency. The miracles performed by Jesus and recounted to us in the gospels as well as by others show that physical content becomes a subsequency.

In Matthew Chapter 6, when we are told not to worry about what we should eat, drink or wear, we are told that these things become subsequencies. One of the great statements and one of the great truths to be found or to be generalized from Matthew Chapter 6 is this: The real result of trusting God for the physical content of life that we need isn’t that our needs will be met, which I have often thought was the case. But the real result of trusting God is the understanding that comes from that trust. What we come to recognize far beyond the limitation of the pagans who are listed there, who are encapsulated in their situational intelligence, we have been brought to a position of ultimate understanding that really the physical universe, the physical content, itself is converted into this subsequency. Out of that comes such statements as in James Chapter 5 and others in the scripture that directly state—not an implication, not an indirect statement—and directly instruct us that the material world is also a subsequency to the character of God.

In Daniel Chapter 3, when Hananiah, Azariah and Mishael face the potential of death in the fiery furnace, they treat this as a subsequency. So they do not bow down to the circumstance, to the fear of death, nor will they bow down to the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar has set up on the plain of Dura. They were right in what they did. They treated the material content of that situation as a subsequency because of the absolute priority of the mind of God and his revelation. In Daniel Chapter 6, when he is confronted after having violated the edict of King Darius and when he was placed in the lion’s den he treated the material content, the physical content of that situation purely as a subsequency. Because of that we are told in Chapter 6:22 that the angel of the Lord shut the mouth of the lions and they did not hurt the servant of God.

In Matthew Chapter 8, the centurion comes to Jesus and he treats the illness of his servant as a subsequency. He furthermore treats his own intelligence relative to the presence of the absolute priority of Christ as a subsequency. The Lord refers to this as great faith and says, "I tell you the truth, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith." In Matthew Chapter 15, the woman whose daughter has been possessed by a demon comes to Jesus, prostrates herself before his feet and begs for just the crumbs from his table. A tremendous statement symbolizing her own subsequency to the master seated at this table. She is a stranger and a foreigner, and she treats her own mind as a subsequency to the Lord to understand the material content of the distressing circumstances in which her daughter finds herself. The Lord says to this woman and of this woman that she is one of great faith. He simply says to her, "Woman you have great faith! Your request is granted." She leaves with her burden materially and spiritually lifted. He couldn’t make that statement if she or her behavior had not stated to him her position of subsequency and her belief that the material content of the world is nothing more than a subsequency to him. So he would tell us, "Forget about physical content, forget about the material content altogether, treat it as a subsequency."

In Luke 12, the rich fool violated this. Money was a prerequisite for him. He had rather a need to have a prerequisite of thought about such things, about money and material things. He did not treat it as a subsequency at all. Others would treat power and money and health and sickness as much more than subsequencies in the literal sense. Or at least subsequencies only to human priority. Jesus is not impressed by that kind of thought or activity. I suggest that we have three-place logic here with which to deal with situations. On the left-hand side of the page, write, "the position of priority." In the middle position stands the little stick figure in a position of subsequency. At the end of this little chart on the right, write, "physical content," which also has been turned into a subsequency. So the chart runs priority—subsequency—subsequency. Now it is to be observed that what is called knowledge, wisdom and understanding would be that arrangement of the three-place logic, where physical content is removed from a position of priority, where space is removed from a position of priority. Now those things are not absolutely prior. They are placed there by the human priority of man, who takes such things and then removes them from the world of physical content as subsequencies and boosts them up into this vaunted position. They lend this position of priority to such things—space, time, physics, and physiology. This is not in accord with statements of scripture. Daniel 5:4, 23, there is the mention of the gods of gold, silver, iron, wood, bronze and stone. These gods of these metals (aspects of wealth and acquisition) are put into the prior position. This becomes the action of idolatry. Anything put into the prior position by a human being holding priority would become the action of idolatry.

This is also demonstrated in Genesis Chapter 3, where the serpent suggests to the woman in the garden that she should eat the fruit and then "you will know that space is prior to knowledge that physical content is prior to knowledge that experience is prior to knowledge." Indeed in our own world we have put into a position of priority human experience. Now that is not boosted into that position arbitrarily as if we didn’t have any other choice. We make that decision as human beings because human intelligence has this stronghold on a position of priority. In the garden scene in Genesis Chapter 3, it was suggested to Eve that to really understand the world around her she needed to put the material world into a prior position. So she followed this formula and it resulted in death. We are still paying the price for that until this present hour.

A situational intelligence would conclude that empiricism therefore would precede or be a prerequisite to knowledge because empiricism is often put into a position of priority by the situational mind. Reductionism as we have heretofore described it would be a prerequisite for what it is "to know." Holism as is evidenced in the environmental movement in this country and in other places is a prerequisite for what is worth knowing. But the plenary intelligence that is described by the book of Daniel and that is enshrined and identified in other parts of the scripture, is simply a forgotten entity. The plenary intelligence, which understands that absolute priority is followed by the subsequency of human intelligence, which is followed by the subsequency of all physical content. There are people of faith demonstrated in the scripture that understood the nature of plenary intelligence and operated on it, e.g., David when he faces Goliath; Joshua at the gates of the city of Jericho; the people of God as they surrounded the city of Jericho and prepared to pitch battle. They understood that absolute priority had made their own intelligence subsequent and that the physical content of the walls and all material aspects in this entire event of battle were all themselves subsequencies. Elijah, when he faces a disobedient culture; Elisha when they are surrounded by the Syrians and he prays that his servant’s eyes would be opened that "he may see that those that are with us are greater than those that are with our enemies." He turned physical content into a subsequency acknowledging that the absolute priority is a master of al physical subsequencies. Therefore, what we have identified previously, as discourse constraints simply do not adhere. It does not behoove the true believe to consider discourse constraints any further for they are not constraints at all on our discourse. They are not to be constraints at all on the way we think. Discourse constraints have been removed. Therefore, we are quite correct in assuming the extravagant position of faith. It is interesting that the extravagant position of faith is accompanied by the subsequent position of human intelligence. The extravagance of faith cannot be had apart from the humbling of the prior position of human intelligence into a position of subsequency. It is interesting the way the Lord has created the world in just that way.

In Luke Chapter 24, Jesus has an interesting interview with some heavy hearts on the road to Emmaus. He knows of their distress and their disappointment, their heartache. He says to them in Luke 24:25, "How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?’ And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.’" He reveals himself to them. They suddenly had to realize that absolute priority will affect their intelligence in a very dramatic way. It converts it into a subsequency. His resurrection, his presence before them in this particular setting, as intimate as it was and as personal as it was certainly could not convey any other message except that death is a physical subsequency. There are no irreversible processes.

The three-place logic turns out to be a mentalization of the trinity itself: God, the father, representing the eternal; Jesus, the son, entering the world of physical content and putting himself (emptying himself) into the position of subsequency of his human intelligence to the Father, linked by the Holy Spirit connecting the two worlds together and thereby converting all of creation into a position of subsequency to the Father. In our minds, absolute priority represents the eternal, and by an act of the will we submit our human intelligence to become a subsequency to the absolute abstractions of the Lord, linked to the Holy spirit, by faith in what is revealed through him. Human intelligence then stands at the pinnacle peak position in linking the two worlds together. Therefore, everything in our world of physical content is converted into a subsequency of the intelligence and authority of the Father. A remarkable improvement over what the world generally refers to as two-valued logic. We are standing at a unique connective relationship to absolute priority. Therefore, we dare not rationalize experience any further. The rationalization of experience will inherently involve the rationalization of scripture. Because we do not consider ourselves better than other men and certainly not better than the Lord we have occupied this unique position standing in this connective relationship to the Lord we know as the double embrace.